Alone in the Dark has caused
some minor confusion within the gaming community. The first being that the game
released in June of 2008 is actually the 5th one in a series of games
that Atari
has released. Also, there was the movie that was made, that was
supposed to be released around the same time as the game and they were to lend
to each other. However Eden Games, one of the two gaming designers involved in
the project decided to scrap what they had and rework the game from
scratch…completely deviating from the original project, and having practically
nothing to do with the movie.

Two gaming
designers were brought in on this project in order to allow for the game to be
released on multiple systems. Eden Games developed Alone in the Dark for
the Xbox 360,
PS3
and Windows.
Hydravision Entertainment developed it for
PS2
and Wii, and while the storyline and general gameplay are the same on all
platforms, Hydravision's version has a few different cut scenes and some other
small differences.

PS3 will be
releasing their version of the game on November 18,2008, it's title being
Alone in the Dark: Inferno. It is basically the same as the 360/Windows
version, with the main differences being better controller performance and some
differences in the story and gameplay during one of the chapters in the game.

The game is
classified as a Survival Horror, Action Adventure type game and is a single
player game.

The Game:

The game is played
out like many other action adventure games in that you combine problem solving
with the action/adventure. In Alone in the Dark, you start out in a New York
City apartment building that has got some seriously creepy issues. People are
dying, the building catches fire and begin to collapse, and to top it off you
have to fight off possessed people.

As the game
progresses, you learn how to move your character around in his environment, how
to fight, how to heal and so forth. As you progress through each level with
basically takes you from one section of an overrun NYC to the next, the
challenges become more difficult and you have to use your ingenuity a little
more to overcome some foes, because the gun doesn't always cut it.

One of the cool
things about the game is that as you go along you pick up objects: a flashlight
and some batteries, gun and bullets,
first aid spray
and bandages,
glowsticks,
various aerosol type canisters, plastic containers full of flammable liquids and
a lighter, and tape. Alone, some of the items are pretty worthless, but if you
combine a few, you can make your own Molotov Cocktail, have a mini
flame-thrower, or enhance your healing. Keeping your pockets full with a variety
of these items is very handy throughout the game.

The Story:

You play a man
named Edward Carnby and you wake up in one of the rooms of the apartment
building, not knowing who you are or why you are finding yourself being led to
the roof by a gun-toting thug who has orders to kill you. In the room that you
wake up in, there is a priest named Theophile who seems to be in the same boat
as you. On your way up to the roof the creepiness immediately starts when the
walls suddenly develop these large scar-like cracks and basically suck your
executioner through a door and kills him. As with any good horror game there is
plenty of screaming and virtual blood.

The first level
takes you through the crumbling ruins of the apartment building, allowing the
player to get a feel for the controls and their various functions, discover how
to pick up and use/combine different objects, and give you the basic backdrop to
your story.

Once you escape
the building you spend the rest of the game running about the city trying to
figure out your past and what connection you have to the man who ordered your
execution, the priest Theophile and the mysterious stone that he wore. You come
across Theophile a few more times throughout the game, with him helping to fill
in tidbits here and there. Various other NPC's (non player characters) also help
you to piece together who…or what you are and were.

Along the way, you
hook up with a female NPC named Sara who helps you out in some places, nags the
hell outta you in typical New Yorker fashion during other times, and of course
is part of the romantic sublot for the game.

As you go through
the game you learn the stone Theo wore that he passed to you when he died, is
called the Philosopher's Stone, and it is basically a Pandora's Box
for Lucifer
himself. You also find out that you are very very old, and that the man who
ordered your execution is also responsible for your amnesia. You finally square
off against him, but in the end you are faced with two highly unpleasant choices
that ultimately result in you sacrificing your budding love interest no matter
what. The question is, do you damn your love, or release Hell's minions onto
earth?

My Opinion:

I'm not really a
fan of horror stuff, and I'll admit that I wouldn't normally just walk in from
off the street and buy a game like this. A friend of mine bought this and was
all creeped out by it and saved this game for when I came over. We would then
take turns at the controller. The graphics were clean and the fires were
amazingly real. The story was intriguing, and again, I'm trying not to be biased
here because of my general dislike for this particular genre. The music was
probably my favorite part, because it was so appropriate for this game and
absolutely beautiful. The score was composed by Olivier Deriviere, and he used
The Mystery of Bulgarian Voices
strongly throughout the score.

But my biggest
complaint was the controls. They were by far the most horrific thing I have ever
dealt with in a game. And this goes for both the PS2 and Xbox versions. Whether
you are performing various actions, driving *serious cringe* or just trying to
move through your various items, it is NOT user-friendly. With the item
checking, I finally resorted to the D-Pad on the XBox controller
which is
infamous for having it's own sensitivity and responsiveness issues. But it was
better than trying to scroll through things using the thumbsticks! And driving
was just….wow scary. I honestly thought we were never going to get through the
one scene where you are doing this mad dash through the city in a car. All I can
hope is that Sony
delivers with the PS3's promised controller response upgrades.

Setting aside my
personal gaming preference, any game that has control response this horrific is
definitely not worth spending a bunch of money for. A game can have the most
amazing story, music and graphics, but if your struggling to get through the
game because of poor controlling, then it takes the fun and enjoyment out of any
game. Because of this fact alone, the game scores overall poorly with me.

If you don't mind
fighting with the controller at times though and are really looking for a good
horror game, well then maybe you will enjoy this game more than me. Here's
hoping the developers take a look at the game and learn from their mistakes.